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Anomaly
Anomalies are portals in time that form links between eras throughout all of history. This idea comes from the wormhole theory in relativity. They have opened numerous times in numerous locations. While almost everyone who knows of them including Nick Cutter, the rest of the ARC, and Helen Cutter refer to them as anomalies, members of the nomadic Time Tribe such as Ethan Dobrowski, simply call them Gateways. (Episode 4.3) Attributes Nick Cutter describes them being somewhat like an earthquake in time which occur along temporal fault lines. They resemble glowing shattered pieces of glass floating in mid-air, through which people, animals and objects can travel. It is guessed that this could be a 'fracture' in the time continuum. It is also stated in Episode 1.2, 1.3 and 2.2 that atmospheric gases and liquid can also pass through. The anomalies are highly magnetic, they can draw ferrous objects — for example keys, and pens — into them, they also render compasses useless near them. Connor Temple proved this multiple times by throwing metal objects into the anomalies (once accidentally throwing his front door key into the first one that was found). However it is shown in Episode 1.4 that the magnetic field is not strong enough to penetrate through the metal of a stainless steel fridge door. The anomalies also produce radio interference on the frequency 87.6FM as demonstrated by the shopping center anomaly. (Episode 2.1) An anomaly can either have a fixed location at both "ends" of the anomaly or one end may be unstable and thus move location, for example the present end of an anomaly moves in the 3rd while the past location of the anomaly was fixed. (Episode 1.3) The anomalies can open in any setting. They can open in small spaces such as a fridge (Episode 1.4) and can open through obstacles such as floors (Episode 3.3). They can open underwater and several metres above the ground. It is also possible to enter only partway into an anomaly without being sucked in, for example a person can take a look through an anomaly simply by poking their face through without travelling all the way through. (Episode 1.1) They can cut across distance as well as time, as creatures which were never native to Great Britain, nor the area which Britain has passed through in its geological past, have passed through the anomalies into modern Britain. For example the Dodo was only found on tropical islands around Mauritius, and Scutosaurus were located in Russia and parts of Europe. Also the team encountered Dodos at one anomaly, a bird which did not evolve until well after the time of the dinosaurs ended (the dinosaurs became extinct at the end of Cretaceous period 65 million years ago whereas the Dodo had not separated from its common ancestor with the Rodrigues Solitaire until around 25 million years ago). This would indicate that the anomalies can be linked to any period in the earth's history. In Episode 1.6 it's demonstrated that interference with the past can alter the future in unspecified ways. Also, the ending of the sixth episode ended with a cliffhanger where the anomaly appeared to start to expand and brighten for reasons unknown, although Episode 2.1 showed this was just the anomaly closing. It has not yet been established how many time anomalies have occurred nor where they originate from, though the capture of an extinct form of Sarcopterygian suggests that there have been others before the Forest of Dean anomaly seen in Episode 1.1. The strength of the anomalies weaken over time. They slowly lose their magnetic power, shrink in size, and eventually collapse in on themselves. Although they can be re-opened such as the Permian anomaly, which has closed and reopened at least three times, and the Carboniferous anomaly which never closed at all. When an anomaly closes, any object caught halfway through the anomaly will be severed, with each piece in a different time zone, as seen with the Deinonychus in Episode 2.1 . In the spin-off novels Shadow of the Jaguar, Extinction Event and Fire and Water, an anomaly opens in the Peruvian Jungle, Russian Tundra and a South African Safari Park (respectively), proving that anomalies exist outside the UK. However, the canonicity of the books has yet to be determined. However, in Episode 3.1, the team determine that the Sun Cage anomaly originally opened in Egypt, and allowed a Pristichampsus to come through and make it's mark on history, thus proving that at least one anomaly has opened overseas. The team have encountered several "freak anomalies". Some of them have changed their locations (Episodes 1.3 and 2.5) and some have been larger than normal (Episode 3.4). In Episode 3.4, an anomaly opened that connected Christine Johnson's headquarters to the Future. The anomaly remained open for much of the series until Helen Cutter closed it at the end of Episode 3.9, until reopening in Episode 3.10. In Episode 3.8, another anomaly opened connecting a race track to a future cliff in the same time period. This is the first time two anomalies have connected the same two time periods at the same time. This may be a sign that the anomalies are becoming more erratic. After discovering a Pristichampsus that emerged an anomaly contained in the Sun Cage, an artifact dating to Ancient Egypt, and after Sarah Page initally believed it to be an Egyptian demon, Nick Cutter realised that the Pristichampus had gone through the anomaly in Egyptian times and therefore they based Ammut on them. Cutter suggested that many more mythical creatures could have actually been creatures from different time periods, having came through anomalies. (Episode 3.1) Cutter encountered a Future Bird sometime earlier, it was reminiscent of the Incan god Pacha Kamaq, and made it's lair in the ruins of an Incan temple in the Peruvian Jungle. He later theorised to Lester the creature may have been seen later in history by the Incas and incorporated into their mythology. (Shadow of the Jaguar) It could also be possible that creature incursions caused by anomalies could account for beliefs held by people that some prehistoric creatures are not actually extinct. As the only human presence is on Earth, it is unknown whether anomalies are located anywhere else in the universe, though it's likely that anomalies may not be confined to just Earth, a single planet in the whole of space. Anomalies could be located in outer space and other planets or moons, although the fact that no known Earth anomalies have been known to link to a location off-planet may dispute this. There is a very unlikely but not impossible possibility that the Camouflage Beast is not from Earth, as it's home was never seen. (Episode 3.2) Spaghetti Junction Main article: Spaghetti Junction Prediction and Control Helen Cutter has claimed she knows the locations of the anomalies before they open and has hinted that she can control them. Yet the evidence she's provided for her claims has proved contradictory. At the end of the first episode, Helen — who is presumed to be trapped in Permian era after having passed through an anomaly — is seen from a distance and leaves Nick Cutter a living specimen of an Ammonite, while in the second she is encountered by Stephen Hart. Also there is a theory that using the Anomaly Locking Mechanism it could be used to make the outer shell (the temporal shards) of the an anomly more powerful than the inside which could force it to collapse onto its self causing the hole in the space-time continum to be "filled in" so it closes. This implies that she can create them as there is no other explanation as to how she can get from period to period. This is underlined in the fifth episode, where she appears and disappears, presumably through another anomaly, as she clearly couldn't have come through the sky anomaly. It is revealed in the third episode after she is tracked down by Nick that she was staying away because she did not want to reveal the secret of the anomalies to the world, something she knew Nick would be compelled to do. In the same episode she claims that she has the "the key to time". She later tells Lester that she is aware of where the anomalies will open before they actually do. However, in Episode 1.6, she 'used' the team to find the Permian anomaly that leads to the future, suggesting that she can't control them or locate them after all (although it is stated later in Series 2 that she was eventually able to reach the future via an anomaly). In the opening scene of Episode 2.2, one can briefly see a device in her bag that resembles the handheld anomaly trackers later made by Connor Temple. And at the end of season 2, she is shown in command of multiple versions of the same man, perhaps hinting that she has gained sufficient control of the anomalies to use time travel to create multiples of people. It is eventually revealed in Series 3 that this cloning is not a function of the anomalies themselves, but that Helen used the anomalies to steal cloning technology from the future. In Episode 2.1, Nick Cutter correctly theorized that the anomalies cause radio interference on the 87.6FM wavelength. He passed this knowledge on to Connor Temple, who creates the Anomaly Detection Device sometime before the beginning of Episode 2.3. This new equipment allows the home agency to track any new anomalies within seconds of them opening. Connor also created handheld anomaly trackers to be used by the team in the field. He also mentions he is working on making them more compact. Both these devices show great accuracy; allowing the ARC to track the anomalies much more efficiently. Early in season 3, Nick Cutter constructs a physical 3D model which allows him to predict the location (though not the time) at which some anomalies can be expected to occur. This "matrix" appears to work, since it accurately predicts the abandoned house anomaly in Episode 3.2; however Cutter is the only person who understands it, so his death (as well as the fact that the model itself was damaged in the ARC explosions) effectively renders it useless. It is possible to contain and even move anomalies using magnetic fields (e.g. by surrounding an anomaly with a "cage" constructed of magnetite), even when the anomaly is closed. It is also possible to temporarily prevent the passage of objects through an anomaly by the application of an electric current. Connor Temple uses this discovery to create a device which "locks" anomalies by "reversing their polarity". Repeating the process returns the anomaly to its natural unlocked state. A "locked" anomaly appears as a glowing sphere, in contrast to the "frozen explosion" an unlocked anomaly appears as. There's an Artefact that was created in the future version of the ARC that can project a hologram of every anomaly and what points in time they connect. The entire map can be shown on a futuristic computer if the Artefact is plugged into it. The Artefact was of great interest both to Christine Johnson and Helen Cutter. Sarah Page at first theorised light activated the hologram, but later decided light would have to be shone at it from a specific angle. However, Helen stole and later smashed the Artefact so the team would be unable to use the version they already had. In Episode 3.9, it was revealed Helen Cutter had some sort of remote control that could open and close anomalies. The origins of the anomaly remote are unkown. It's also unkown at what point in the series Helen began using it. However, it seems anomalies couldn't be opened to any place or time, as Helen needed to go to the Late Cretaceous where she could then go through a "natural" anomaly to the 333 site. Although the 333 Anomaly closed, the remote was dropped in the Cretaceous, so it's possible Connor and Abby could reopen the anomaly to get Danny back. It's also possible that Helen had a second remote, since she knew that she dropped the remote in the Cretaceous and did not take it with her. However, this may be because she was convinced that het actions at the 333 site would errase her from time, so she did not need it anymore. In Episode 4.5, Connor Temple discovered that some form of illegally dumped cheaply produced Deisel Fuel had been affecting an Anomaly, causing it to frequently close and reopen, Connor was even able to open and close the Anomaly by moving a jug of the fuel closer and away from the anomaly. This may indicate how the Anomaly Device Helen used in the past series could work. Gallery File:Precambrian anomaly.jpg|Precambrian anomaly (2.2) File:Srbflat2.jpg|Future anomaly (3.5) File:UnderwaterAnomaly.JPG|Cretaceous anomaly (1.3) File:SpaghettiJunctionAnomalies.jpg|Anomalies of Spaghetti Junction. File:Hangar.jpg|Cretaceous Anomaly (3.4) File:The Future.JPG|Present anomaly into the future (2.4) File:Dodo Anomaly.JPG|Spaghetti Junction anomaly (1.4) Behind the Scenes *The effect for the anomaly appears to have had a minor change in Series 4. Now, the Anomalies appear more orange in color, rather than white. They also contain lots of small shards, instead of a smaller amount of large shards, and shrink when locked, instead of the shards connecting to make a sphere. Trivia *It's possible that anomalies never close, and instead just become, as Helen Cutter said in Series 1, "Invisible to the naked eye". The invisible anomalies are locked, so no creatures can come through. If the anomalies are permanent, it would explain why one would still be trapped in the sun cage, even when the cage has been moved away from the Anomaly once it had gone.﻿ ﻿ See Also *List of Anomaly Sites *Spaghetti Junction Category:Objects * Category:Featured Articles